It’s no surprise that the French have mastered yet another exquisite spirit — vodka. In addition to the region’s reputation for excellent wine, French vodka has become a prominent high-end export in the last 30 years or so.

What began with Grey Goose has now expanded into an industry filled with premium vodkas, such as LeSin, that are distilled and diluted with the finest French ingredients. These superior ingredients, in addition to the artful distillation process, render French vodka some of the best vodka in the world.

What Is In French Vodka?

Because the distillation process for vodka is all about creating the purest possible spirit, the ingredients used to get to that final product are all the more important. When it comes to French vodka, the ingredients are where the magic is made.

One unique ingredient for many French vodkas is the source of the mash — the starchy substance that’s fermented and then distilled to become vodka. Traditional Russian or Polish vodka is made with wheat or potatoes. These days, vodka is made with any number of starchy grains and vegetables, like corn, rye, soybeans, and many more.

Although not all French vodkas are made this way, many taste different because their source material is French-grown grapes. Known for their impressive vineyards all over the countryside, these grapes are some of the best in the world. In France, they’re turned into vodka. The French grapes are fermented and turned into mash, just like the traditional grains, and then put through the normal distillation process.

Select French vodkas, like LeSin, are made with winter wheat grown in the fields of Cognac. This wheat is the best in the region, known for its lush farmland and world-class crops.   

The other main ingredient that makes French vodka so unique is the water used to dilute the liquor at the very end of the process. This ingredient makes a huge difference in the flavor of the vodka because it fills much of the bottle. The minerals present in the water have a monumental impact on the vodka’s flavor — and that’s why French vodkas taste so good.

Premium French vodka should always be made with water from France’s abundant springs. LeSin vodka is made with water from the Gensac Springs, long lauded as some of the best water for liquor creation in the world.

This water is filtered through natural limestone, giving it a pure taste that people often describe as sweet and smooth. Those minerals go a long way in making LeSin vodka taste delicious and finish with a smooth aftertaste.

How Is French Vodka Made?

The answer to this question really depends on the maker. The process for distilling vodka was essentially perfected with the advent of activated charcoal filtering in the 1700s, which left the vodka much purer, cleaner, and better-tasting.

It’s not as if there aren’t differences — brands control how many distillations the vodka goes through, what it’s filtered with, the amount and type of water to add at the end, and any additional flavoring. The actual process of creating vodka varies not by region but by distillery.

This is to say that French vodka is not created with one specific distillation process that differs from the traditional way. However, you can always be sure that your French vodka is distilled with extreme care because all French vodkas are premium vodkas.

This could mean extra distillations, specific types or sizes of pot stills, or a proprietary bottling process. Regardless, French vodka is always made with the utmost precision.

Does French Vodka Taste Different?

This is perhaps the greatest difference between traditional Eastern European vodka and French vodka. The vodka that comes out of the vodka belt — the countries where vodka has historic cultural importance, like Denmark, Poland, and Russia, among others — is often fragrant, strong, and harsh.

French vodka is a nod to the smoother spirits of the world, with a smooth mouthfeel that’ll leave you wanting to sip the vodka without even a bit of ice. Whereas traditional vodkas are often kept in the freezer to help the harsh taste, French vodkas can be served at room temperature.

You’re unlikely to ever scrunch your nose or get chills from a shot of French vodka. Instead, the vodka will coat your mouth with a pleasant and sweet taste, while still maintaining the dry flavor of vodka, and go down your throat with ease.

If you’re tasting French vodka made with grapes, you might even taste a hint of that fermented berry flavor. Akin to the way juniper comes through in the flavor of gin, if you have a keen sense of taste you might be able to sense the snap-frozen grapes at the root of some French vodkas.

No matter which French vodka you choose, you can expect a light flavor and a smooth mouthfeel. French vodka is the premium, upper echelon take on this delicious spirit. The only way to know how good it is is trying it for yourself.

So grab yourself some LeSin Vodka, Ciroc, or Grey Goose and enjoy the uniqueness of an ultra-premium French Vodka.